Whumptober 2019 - 04 - Human Shield
by DinerGuy
Summary: 2018 reboot. Money wasn't everything, but there was something to be said for actually having enough to pay one's bills. There was also something to be said for not being knocked over the head and used as a bank hostage either.


_A/N: Standard disclaimers apply._

* * *

It wasn't that Magnum was surprised he had enough cash on hand to actually require a trip to the bank to deposit it. Okay, well, it was that, but, granted, most of his clients didn't end up paying him in full. Or in actual dollars. Or at all.

So his trip to the bank mid-morning on a Thursday was unplanned—although definitely not unwanted. Magnum had actually gotten paid in full on a case that had taken him nearly a week to finish up, which meant he had more in his pocket at the moment than he did in his actual bank account. Money wasn't everything, but there was something to be said for actually having enough to pay one's bills. And so, Magnum was feeling quite pleased with himself as he finished up with the teller and then turned to head back out the door to where he'd parked the Ferrari.

Of course, no sooner had he turned around than two masked men charged through the front door and one fired a gun in the air.

_"Everybody down!" _the man yelled amidst the screams and shouts from the now-terrified patrons.

Magnum had honestly had every intention of obeying and just letting events play out. He certainly couldn't take down two armed men on his own when they were across the room and there were other people who would get caught in the crossfire. But then one of the guys made the manager take him to the vault while the other was left guarding the hostages, which had significantly evened the odds. So, when the robber had conveniently turned his back while standing in arms' reach of where Magnum was crouched on the floor, he'd decided to seize the opportunity.

That part had all played out like he'd expected, and all he'd gotten was an elbow to the face for his trouble before he had the man out cold on the floor. Sirens were starting to filter in from outside, and Magnum had let himself relax a little

"Hey," he half-whispered at one of the tellers. "Get everyone out of here."

She'd swallowed and nodded, then scrambled to her feet and hurried to unlock the front door. Magnum had watched as the other customers and tellers began to exit quickly. Then he'd taken a breath and quickly checked the gun he'd taken from the downed robber. All he had to do was get the drop on the other man when he returned from the vault and the whole situation would be safely resolved.

He turned toward the back of the bank—just before his vision exploded in a burst of fire and light as someone hit him from behind.

He vaguely registered his shoulder slamming into the tile floor. Everything around him faded away, and Magnum blinked a few times as he tried to bring his surroundings back into focus. It all seemed so far away…

Slowly, though, the sounds that had been so muted in the background grew in volume as the fuzziness across his vision slowly retreated until it was just dancing at the sides. Magnum groaned as the pounding in his head intensified. He was considering dragging himself to his feet, but, at that exact moment, it was too painful to think about attempting.

He slowly glanced around the room, taking in the manager now huddled on the floor by the counter. The robber's gun was trained on his remaining hostages, and his gaze was focused directly on Magnum.

"We weren't gonna hurt anybody!" he snapped. "Just needed the money and then we'd be gone. That was the plan! You should've just left well enough alone."

Magnum wanted to point out that he'd really had no way of knowing that, but he refrained. Partly because of how his head was still pounding but also because it really didn't seem like the wisest course of action.

In the next moment, there was a noise at the door, and the robber's attention snapped toward it. Magnum realized it was the police swarming the building; with most of the hostages outside now, it would be the most logical move for the responding officers.

Just as his mind processed this fact, the robber leaped forward, grabbed a handful of Magnum's shirt, and hauled him to his feet.

"Get up!" the robber yelled, cuffing the hostage in the side of the head when Magnum tried to resist.

The room tilted and spun around Magnum as he was so quickly forced up, and he had to swallow hard to hold back the churning in his stomach. He dazedly felt the man's arm snaking around his throat, and then he coughed as the grip tightened. But what was most concerning was the cold, hard muzzle of the gun now pressed against his temple.

"Stay back!"

Magnum winced at the shout right in his ear. His head was pounding even more now, and he couldn't seem to focus his thoughts or vision on any one thing. He blinked as he looked around the blurry room, just barely able to make out several uniformed HPD officers standing just inside the door of the bank.

Next to Magnum, the bank robber was still yelling, and he sounded nervous—not the best combination considering the circumstances. "I'll shoot him! I will!"

Magnum found himself having to backpedal quickly to avoid being knocked off his feet as the man holding him moved away from the police. He wanted to say something, wanted to try to communicate a way they could resolve the situation—but the problem was also that he didn't know what to say. He still couldn't hold onto one thought for very long, especially as the grip around his throat tightened even more, cutting off his air supply and forcing him to grab onto the man's arm to keep the hold from getting worse.

One of the cops was saying something, but Magnum couldn't focus enough to hear the words. His sight was still going in and out, and the only thing he could hear was a dull ringing in his ears.

And then they were moving again, and Magnum wasn't even sure how he managed to keep his feet as he stumbled backward. Then he heard the sound of a crash bar being smashed into even as a siren started blaring and a light flashing around him. The thought that they must have gone through a fire exit occurred to him just as he was pulled down a short step onto pavement, the sun suddenly beating down on him.

Magnum took a deep breath, trying to concentrate on his breathing enough to help him regain control over his senses. The one thing that kept echoing through his mind, even past the incredible _ache_ that just wouldn't go away, was that he couldn't let this guy escape. There was really only one way the situation would end if he didn't act, and Magnum really wasn't partial to the idea of being shot once he was no longer useful as a hostage.

And so, he took another breath and then threw himself back, hoping to catch the robber off-guard enough to take him down. It didn't quite play out the way he'd imagined, but it was enough to loosen the guy's grip as he stumbled, and Magnum took advantage of the opening.

Ducking out of the man's grasp, Magnum turned and drove a fist into the man's stomach. He managed to land the blow, but then he couldn't move fast enough to avoid the return punch, and his head snapped to the side as his body followed suit. The roaring in his head flared to an unbearable level, and he felt himself collapsing to the rough concrete underfoot.

A little voice in the back of his head urged him to get up, to take control of the gun, but he just couldn't make himself obey it.

Magnum shook his head, trying to clear it, but that only seemed to make things worse. The back alley behind the bank swam in front of him, and he thought he saw a shadowy figure looming over him, a gun pointing in his face… but he just couldn't react…

And then the sound of a shot rang out around him, and Magnum flinched. He fully expected to feel the agony of a bullet tearing through him at any second… but it never came. He must be more in shock than he'd thought…

"Magnum!"

He blinked. That sounded like…

Katsumoto's face came into view then, peering down at him. "Magnum? Can you hear me?"

"Hmm," he managed to mumble in response. He should probably get up, give his statement… but when he tried to move, the pain washed over him again and nearly sent him tumbling back into unconsciousness.

"Hey, don't move, okay?" The detective put a hand on his chest. "EMTs will be here in a minute."

As much as he wanted to argue that he was fine, he knew he wasn't, so Magnum just settled for a tiny nod.

"That was really stupid, you know," Katsumoto said, lifting an eyebrow. "You could've gotten yourself killed."

Magnum made a face. "Wasn't about to… let him get away…" he managed.

Katsumoto just shook his head. "You're really lucky, Magnum," was all he said, although the lift to the corner of his mouth negated the stern tone he'd taken.

"Don't tell me… you were worried about me?" Magnum managed to crack, a smile spreading across his face even though his head was pounding and his whole body was aching.

In response, Katsumoto rolled his eyes. He said something else, but Magnum could feel himself starting to slip back into the darkness that was slowly overtaking his vision. He vaguely saw more faces appear over him and realized the paramedics had arrived. They were asking him questions he couldn't quite process, and, after struggling for a moment, he just gave up fighting against the fog and let himself slowly drift off into unconsciousness.

It was okay. Everything was going to be all right—well, at least, until he had to explain to Higgins and the guys what had happened.

* * *

_Fin._


End file.
